Mobile Project Gundam Wing: Zodiac Reprise
by ZeonTwoSix
Summary: The year is After Colony 200. With peace just acquired, and the terraformation project now taking its baby steps, another major threat rears its head, bringing with it a very blood-stained history as to the origins of the AC era itself. (Basically an interquel of sorts between the events of Endless Waltz and Frozen Teardrop)


**PROTO-MOVEMENT: Restarting the Waltz's Third Beat**

Somewhere near the snowy outskirts of Vladivostok, a special facility is operating round the clock. Its primary purpose: to safely dismantle tools of the past few wars called mobile suits, and repurpose the cannibalized parts whenever necessary.

One of the few purpose-built facilities controlled by a joint task force between the Earth Sphere Unified Nations' Preventer Corps, and the Colony-based Sweeper Group, it is tasked with reprocessing more or less 12,000 mobile suits that saw battle, including at the very least 250 of the MMS-O1 Serpents that participated (and were later immobilized) during the Mariemeia Army Rebellion in Christmas of AC 196. As of late, it has already reached the halfway mark of its intended target.

Little do its staff know, that would be as far as it would go.

"Alpha-101 to Overlord. All squads are in position; waiting on your signal."

"Acknowledged, Alpha Team. Overlord to Paladin team, commence bombardment…"

Within seconds, high-explosive mortar shells came crashing down the concrete walls in five specific places around the facility. As the facility itself was lightly guarded with a small infantry battalion and four anti-infantry bunkers, it only took about thirty to forty minutes for the mortar teams to completely remove the outer fortifications, and another five for the six invasion teams to secure the outside perimeter.

x-x-x-x-x

Meanwhile, inside a sort of operations center at an undisclosed, secure position…

"Perimeter at Vladivostok base secured, Viscount…" said one of the terminal operators who were monitoring the said skirmish.

"How long until we fully secure the base?"

"Occupation of the main complex will be complete in about 20 minutes, but complete access of the facility will take some time, sir…"

"Heavy resistance?"

"Both hardware and software-wise, sir. The database has been tightly encrypted and secured with multiple complex firewalls; it would take us about a full week uninterrupted to crack it open, unless it is accessed from within."

"As for the hardware part, Viscount," added another operator. "The team guarding the Mainframe seems to have holed up around it. We cannot risk endangering the essential data stored therein."

The man they referred to as 'Viscount' – as evident by his ceremonial attire with matching black cape – then turned to another person to his left. "Seems this operation is trickier than we expected…" His companion, a fine, young lady with long, black hair and a lab coat, seemed all the more amused at the situation, no trace of concern whatsoever.

"No matter," she calmly uttered. "Data in there is obsolete, compared to the ones we have already pilfered from other mainframes…"

She then approached one of the operators. "Then again, it won't hurt us getting more data from this repository…" Grabbing the microphone, she contacted the team leader nearest to the fortified area: "Unit November, you're cleared to drop the gas. All units within twenty meters from the mainframe, get clear."

"That's… Rather extreme, Doctor," commented the Viscount.

"Better than risk damage to the mainframes. Just have them ready to vent out the gas after 15 minutes…"

x-x-x-x-x

Back at the Vladivostok base, the remaining soldiers guarding the mainframe room – about five, armed to the teeth with anti-infantry weapons and equipment – were still holed up in a makeshift fortification. The invasion forces have already lost about half a company trying to approach the area., while the rest have stacked up on both corners of the hall leading to them.

Suddenly, a trio of soldiers with large backpacks approached them, motioning them to withdraw. As the initial invading team obliged with the order, the ones who just arrived have started to fastened special gas masks and brought out three canisters from their bags each, pulled the pins, and then threw them right in front of the fortifications.

Seeing as the defenders were cut off from the facility's supply depots, they never got the chance to acquire the gas masks. Thus they could not shield themselves from the nerve gas, killing them all slowly as the three masked soldiers approached them with high-powered pistols.

As the masked units breached through the fortified area, they approached the fallen soldiers and unloaded three shots each – one in the head, two in the heart. One of them, lying near the door to the mainframe room, brought out what looks like a distress beacon. But before he could activate it…

"BLAM!"

The shot not only blew off the soldier's head, but it also broke the distress beacon with the shot that went through the former. One of the masked soldiers gave a thumbs-up towards one of the CCTV cameras in the area, which then kicked the exhaust vents to suck away the nerve gas.

x-x-x-x-x

Back at the operations center…

"Viscount, all hostiles eliminated. We're good to go."

Upon receiving the news, he calmly turned to his female companion. "I guess I owe you on that one, doctor…"

"No need for that, Viscount," she replied. "We all wanted the base for our plans, right?"

"Anyways, aren't you coming with me to meet the invasion teams?"

"I'm not that much into such pageantries. I may have to pass on that one…"

"Your call, Doctor…" And with that, the Viscount left the room for the helipad.

"Aristocrats sure are fond of aggrandizing their gestures, doc…" Said one of the operators. The black-haired woman leered lightly at him, promoting him to turn back to his monitor in shock, as if he's expecting her to 'react badly.' To his surprise, though…

"For once, I will have to agree with you. Too many pageantries, I guess…"

And then she brought out her gun and shot him in the back. "Pathetic…"

x-x-x-x-x

The old UESA-affiliated nation of Germany.

Ever since AC 100, much of the said country's territory to the north has been seceded to the old rulers of the Sanc Kingdom, long before the rise of the Peacecraft Royal Family a quarter of a decade later. Its borders were reduced by about 35%, which also included the old capital Berlin.

In between times, the former republic has moved its capital to Stuttgart, in order to prevent the invaders from crippling the government further. The only thing that was left intact from the old times was the famed Autobahn – more than twelve thousand kilometers of asphalt and concrete interconnecting the entirety of the old State.

Nowadays, with the collapse of Sanc and the restoration of Germany's original borders, the Autobahn is as lively as ever. Multitudes of vehicles plying through its roads as if no war has ever existed.

… Including what appears to be a dark blue sports coupe, as it waves around the bends, passing through gaps in between trucks like there's no tomorrow.

Its driver has been putting the beast's twin-turbocharged V6 engine to its paces ever since he arrived via Dusseldorf Airport a night ago, and he only has about a day left to reach the are up north – the ESUN-Controlled territory of New Denmark.

The place known to some as the old Sanc Kingdom.

The driver has now reached the part of the Bahn at Norderstedt, and is temporarily free from the speed limits for a few minutes… At least before he gets to the outskirts of Rendsburg, where he needs to slow down to the regulated 120.

But with his ride being as capable as most high-end supercars usually blazing through the same road, he's got all the time and control in the world. So, he does what most supercar drivers do in this situation…

Floor it. Hard.

x-x-x-x-x

Back at Vladivostok, a transport helicopter has just landed unloading a fresh batch of soldiers to assist with containment. From its side door came the Viscount, wearing a long jacket to Shield himself from the cold air.

Just then, a foot soldier approached him.

"Lord Viscount!" He exclaimed as he saluted the VIP in front of him.

"How's the decryption process going? Do we have total control of the base?"

"Well, Isis-24 told me to communicate this to you-"

"Belay that order, private!" blared the said soldier's radio. He then handed the same to the Viscount."

"Everything under control, Ensign Avalon?"

"Yes, Lord Viscount," she replied. "It took me quite a while to break through one of the firewalls, but it's nothing I can't handle…"

"Excellent work. Return to base and meet up with the Doctor. She'll be needing your 'technical skills' at the lab once more."

"But we still need to reset the firewalls to counteract any attempts to retake or purge the mainframes…"

"That's an order, Ensign…"

A sigh was later heard on the radio. "Understood, my Lord…"

The Viscount then ordered the soldier whom he took the radio from to reset the frequency. "Patch me in to all invasion teams in the area…"

"Already done, my Lord…"

"All units, this is Viscount Bucephalus L. Romefeller. I commend you all for the success of this operation. With this MS Depot finally under our control, we are now a few steps closer towards our first of three goals: the Revival of OZ!"

"Long have we waited from the shadows of peace and diplomacy, hoping that we would finally be led towards the proper path to prosperity. But our leaders have, as always failed to deliver with their promises. They may have helped the cause of the Colonists for political and economic stability, but they have neglected the fact that there are still the downtrodden who chose to remain here on Earth."

"And now they give us this Mars Terraformation Program as their ideal solution? Just how sure will they be with this solution, especially if they refuse to disclose to us this in full detail?"

"We do not need another planet just to achieve prosperity. And neither will we need their help!"

"Today is just the beginning, comrades-in-arms… We now have the resources they have deprived humanity of before… Soon we will take the fight to them!"

"Only then can we proudly declare that the true spirit of OZ has been reborn!"

As he ended his speech, loud battlecries can be heard from around the facility as the flag of the Organization of the Zodiac was hoisted up on the flagpole, with the bright light of the flames illuminating it on this cold winter night.

x-x-x-x-x

Meanwhile, the driver of the sports coupe has just reached the mountain pass overlooking the New Denmark peninsula. He then parked at a nearby cliff side, stepped out of his steed with its warning lights still on, and gazed over the serene land with his Prussian blue eyes.

"To think I'd go back to where everything started…" he uttered, then let off a light smirk, as he boarded his blue steed and rode on to the night. On the side window of the car was a decal which bore both the Union Jack, and surprisingly the emblem of the L1 Colony cluster.

And the name beside it: "H. R. Lowe"…

x-x-x-x-x

The year is After Colony 200. Two whole centuries have passed, and peace has just been achieved…

Yet now it faces what may be its biggest threat yet: Revolution…

x-x-x-x-x


End file.
